Wendy Binks on Author Visits, Drawing Classes and the Magic of a Good Picture Book
There's a moment that happens during Wendy Binks' school visits that she didn't expect the first time and hasn't forgotten since.
She was in a village school in the mountains of Northern Bali. The principal was translating, switching between Bahasa and Indonesian, and doing her best to bridge the gap. But there was no real common language in the room. So Wendy did what she always does. She opened the book.
And the kids got it. Every bit of it.
When there is no common language, you get to see how well a picture book makes sense without the words to tell the story. That moment, in a mountain classroom far from Fremantle, said everything about why Wendy does this work.
A character that travels without a passport
Stripey the emu chick has been finding his way into the hearts of children, turning up in school libraries, hospital murals, theatre productions and living rooms across Australia and beyond.
Every August during Children's Book Week, photos arrive from schools around the country with kids dressed as Stripey, feathers carefully constructed, and expressions perfectly nailed. The kids just get it! The fact that children recreate him from scratch with cardboard and textas and sheer enthusiasm says everything about the connection he makes. The big kids like to recreate him too in the form of permanent ink – tattoos! We've seen some awesome ones.
And it doesn't stop at the Australian border.
Wendy has taken her books and her pencils into classrooms across the Asia Pacific region from village schools in Bali to the Australian Independent School in Jakarta, where she worked with Year 6 students to create a full mural from scratch. Those students will walk past that wall for years. That's not a visit. That's a legacy. We have some live action of the mural too.
What happens during a visit
When Wendy comes to your school, she doesn't just read from a book and take questions.
She takes students on the whole journey from the first spark of an idea through to a finished character on the page. She shares her own story: She makes the creative process visible and real, not mysterious or out of reach.
And then she picks up a pencil and shows them how it's done.
Students learn to draw Wendy's characters directly from the artist herself. For many of them, that's the moment something shifts. As one school put it after a recent visit:
"She captivated us with her journey as an author, shared how her characters came to life, and even taught us how to draw a few of them. Wendy has truly inspired some future authors and illustrators among our students."
Wendy has also been known to create custom artworks for schools she visits. Made for the community, displayed in libraries and corridors long after the visit is over.
The person in the room
What makes Wendy's visits memorable isn't just the drawing lesson or the book signing. It's the person in the room.
Wendy is someone who is out there, connected to the landscape, curious about the world, and always planning the next adventure. She has taken Stripey into classrooms on multiple continents and watched his story land with children regardless of language, culture or classroom size. A cheeky Australian emu chick turns out to be universally understood. Go figure.
She brings all of that into every school visit: the energy, the humour and the genuine delight in showing a child that they too can make something. When she walks into a classroom, children feel that immediately. There's a real openness and can-do attitude, and kids of all ages enjoy the experience because that's what it is, an experience!
Book Wendy for your school
Wendy Binks is available for author visits, Book Week events, drawing workshops, mural projects and guest speaking engagements in Perth, across Western Australia, interstate and internationally.
Inspiring the next generation of authors, illustrators and adventurers... one emu at a time.
